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Pension Plans: DOL Finalizes Form 5500 Electronic Filing Rule

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has published a final regulation requiring pension plans to file Form 5500 annual reports electronically, beginning with 2008 plan year filings (due in 2009). The agency has also proposed changes to update the forms that will be used under the new electronic system. For information […]

Accommodations: Jury Award for Agoraphobic Worker Slashed by $4 Million

In May, we reported that a Sonoma County jury awarded $6.5 million to county MediCal caseworker George Alberigi, who claimed the county’s human services department refused to accommodate his agoraphobia (fear of going outside) and panic disorder when he applied for a promotion. The jury’s verdict included $1.5 million in economic damages and just under […]

Employment Law Tip: What Makes a Good Interviewer?

Hiring the right people is key to a company’s success. And the job interview is one of the most important ways you can assess whether someone is a good fit. So how can you get the most out of interviews? A good place to start is to ensure that the interviewer has the right skills […]

Travel Requirements: Do We Have to Reimburse Pre-Hire Travel and Training?

We’ve got some questions about reimbursement for pre-hire travel expenses. For example, do we have to reimburse expenses for:   Coming in for an interview from out of town? Going to a facility for a psychological test? Going for a drug test? Going for a physical? Coming in for training or briefings before coming on […]

Employment Law Tip: 4 Tips for Conducting Successful Job Interviews

A job interview, like all selection devices, must be designed to measure the important knowledge, skills, and abilities required for the job. How can you best conduct an interview to find out which candidates have these qualities? Here are four guidelines: Ask candidates to indicate how and in what way they perform duties that require […]

Acccommodations: Merced Jury Awards $800K to Bank Teller Who Was Robbery Victim

A Merced County jury has returned an $800,000 verdict for a Washington Mutual bank teller who claimed that the bank failed to reasonably accommodate her and engage in an interactive process when she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from a bank robbery. How To Survive an Employee Lawsuit: 10 Tips for Success With lawsuits […]

ERI Wins Two More Editorial Awards

The Employer Resource Institute, publisher of the California Employer Advisor, has just won two more editorial awards, bringing the total to eight. The APEX “awards for publishing excellence” from Communication Concepts are in the categories of feature series writing (our two-part blogging series) and new web and intranet sites (California Employer Advisor Online). CEA Online […]

Leave: IRS Issues Guidance on Tax Treatment of Donated Leave

According to a new IRS notice, leave donated by an employee to a qualified employer-sponsored leave bank following a major disaster is not considered income to the donating employee, as long as the leave received by an affected employee is treated as wages for purposes of FICA, FUTA, and income tax withholding. Our HR Management […]

Privacy: Can We Read Employees’ E-mails?

  What right do employers have to access personal e-mail records or personal e-mail accounts that are on company-owned computers? — Robert, HR Manager in L.A.     Technology-related privacy concerns are on the rise for nearly every HR professional. We sought Trey Wichmann’s views on this question. In this situation, the employer’s rights depend […]